If you find an error on all three credit reports, you’ll have to dispute it separately with each credit bureau, as they’re run separately from one another. You’ll also have to file a separate dispute for each error you find. (Here’s more on dealing with multiple errors on credit reports.) You can dispute these errors on your own for free, or you could consider hiring a reputable credit repair company or credit counselor to help.
If you are like many consumers and don’t know your credit score, there are several free places you can find it. The Discover Card is one of several credit card sources that offer free credit scores. Discover provides your FICO score, the one used by 90% of businesses that do lending. Most other credit cards like Capital One and Chase give you a Vantage Score, which is similar, but not identical. Same goes for online sites like Credit Karma, Credit Sesame and Quizzle.
Borrowing from your 401(k) may be the best option for you, since it won’t count as new debt and you pay yourself back interest rather than paying it to a bank. However, if a 401(k) loan isn’t an option, then you’ll need to select a debt consolidation loan. When it comes to debt consolidation, there are lots of scams out there. Review the following options to make sure you’re making the right choice.

The Target REDcard™ Credit Card offers great perks that are sure to please frequent Target shoppers. You receive 5% off every eligible transaction made at Target and Target.com. The discount automatically comes off your purchase — no redemption needed. Other benefits include free shipping on most items, early access to sales and exclusive extras like special items, offers, and 10% off coupon as a gift on your REDcard anniversary each year.* Recently, cardholders received early access to Black Friday deals. Reminder: This card can only be used at Target and on Target.com.

How it works: Once you choose the secured card you prefer, you’ll open an account under your child’s name. If your teen is approved, the bank will ask for a security deposit. Most secured cards require deposits of at least $200, but there are secured cards with security deposits as low as $49. That deposit typically becomes their line of credit. For example, if the minimum security deposit is $200, the line of credit will also be $200.
By taking a two pronged approach to improving your credit through ongoing management of your credit and through fixing the errors in your credit reports, many people have seen dramatic results in a relatively short period of time. If you simply sit back and wait for your credit score to improve, it may be a number of years before you see a significant shift, but by proactively working to fix your credit, you may see noticeable improvement in your credit score in only a matter of months.
SkyBlue is the most affordable and reliable credit repair option that I looked at. SkyBlue has streamlined their credit repair service to offer you the basics of credit repair for only $59/month and just a $59 initial payment, which is far and above cheaper than all of the other credit repair services. Here is a more detailed breakdown of the cost. They also have an “A+” rating from the BBB, which is the best score I’ve seen from a credit repair company.
Great advice! There is only one issue and I am honestly hoping this is just an unclear explation because I would be quite surprised that you got this wrong considering your line of work... Once a debt is charged off, it stays charged off. It can not be "re-activated", "re-aged" or "re-" anything. The law states that the Statute of Limitations (SOL) is fixed at the point which the debt is charged off and it stays the same no matter what. This won't change your credit score unless you can have that line of information removed from your credit report. A charged off debt stays a charged off debt whether you are paying on it or not.
You can order free reports from each of the three credit bureaus from annualcreditreport.com at the same time, or you can stagger your requests throughout the year. Some financial advisors say staggering your requests during a 12-month period may be a good way to keep an eye on the accuracy and completeness of the information in your reports. Because each credit bureau gets its information from different sources, the information in your report from one credit bureau may not reflect all, or the same, information in your reports from the other two credit bureaus.
If you find mistakes on your credit report, like errors regarding your payment histories, or even mistakes in the spelling of your name and incorrect social security numbers, contact the credit bureaus to correct them. The Fair Credit Reporting Act guarantees your right to dispute listings in your credit report, free of charge. All of the major credit bureaus have online systems in which to dispute errors on your credit report. By law, the credit bureaus have 30 days to investigate and correct the errors.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you the right to dispute anything on your credit report. If an item cannot be verified, it must be removed. This is the basic principal of all credit repair. Even accurate items can also be removed. You just need to learn the rules. Credit repair specialists know these rules, but it's important to know that there is nothing a credit repair company can do for you that you cannot do for yourself. However, the work can be tedious so this is why credit repair companies flourish. It's a lot of record keeping. Credit Repair Software can make it easier and faster, by guiding you and generating the letters but you can get the job done with Microsoft Word, as well.
Credit scores affect your ability to buy a car or home, get insurance, and even get utilities turned on in your name. The ins and outs of credit scoring and reporting remain a mystery to many consumers. As a result, many people feel they don't have the power to remove the bad credit items that prevent them from getting what they need. Credit repair companies know the laws that govern credit reporting. Many have relationships with creditors and lenders where they can negotiate debts on behalf on consumers.
So if you want to raise your score in a hurry, pay your credit card balances way before the due date. That way, instead of reporting your balances that were due, as shown on your monthly statement, your credit card company will instead report your reduced balances to the credit bureaus (i.e. the balance left over after you’ve made your most recent monthly payment).
Credit scoring models usually take into account how much you owe compared to how much credit you have available, called your credit utilization rate or your balance-to-limit ratio. Basically it's the sum of all of your revolving debt (such as your credit card balances) divided by the total credit that is available to you (or the total of all your credit limits).
It's important to note that repairing bad credit is a bit like losing weight: It takes time and there is no quick way to fix a credit score. In fact, out of all of the ways to improve a credit score, quick-fix efforts are the most likely to backfire, so beware of any advice that claims to improve your credit score fast. The best advice for rebuilding credit is to manage it responsibly over time. If you haven't done that, then you need to repair your credit history before you see credit score improvement. The following tips will help you with that. They are divided into categories based on the data used to calculate your credit score.